Back in 1961, when JFK was about to be inaugurated, somehow or another the nuns who ran the school I attended at the time managed to get tv sets for every homeroom so that we could all see the historic events of that day.
The very first Roman Catholic president ! We were beside ourselves with happiness, and the nuns wanted to make sure that we never forgot that day.
Fast forward to 2009, and the following wonderful letter that went out from our parish school principal, complete with photo of Barack Obama, the one with him standing, arms folded, with the Capitol dome in the background, on the page:
Dear Parents,
On January 20, 2009 history will be made. The whole world will be watching the Inauguration of Barack Obama. We here feel that this day is very special. Therefore, with the permission of our pastor, we will not have classes that day. We are asking you to ensure that your child watch the Inauguration of Barack Obama, 44th President of the United States of America.
This week all teachers will incorporate this historic event in their curriculum...
Side note-- I lobbied both the pastor and the principal for this, and suggested alternatives if they couldn't let the kids be home with their families for the event.
Oh, and this school is racially mixed, but has relatively few African American students.